What annual New Year's Eve event in New York City began in 1907 with a 700-pound iron-and-wood ball?

The annual New Year's Eve event in New York City that began in 1907 with a 700-pound iron-and-wood ball is the Times Square Ball Drop.

The first drop was organized for December 31, 1907, at the headquarters of The New York Times in the building now known as One Times Square. The newspaper had moved its operations there and promoted Times Square as a destination for public celebrations. The ball descended from a flagpole shortly before midnight.

That original ball was about five feet in diameter and weighed roughly 700 pounds. The event was suspended during World War II in 1942 and 1943 because New York observed a wartime dimout, although crowds still observed midnight in silence. The modern ball is much lighter relative to its size and is covered in illuminated crystal panels.